Taking advantage of the new technology developed during the Industrial Revolution, Hammacher Schlemmer's store in New York City becomes one of the first in the country to have electric lights installed in its showroom.
American author F. Scott Fitzgerald, whose literary masterpiece "The Great Gatsby" was hailed as one of the most important books of the century, was born on September 26, 1896 in St. Paul Minnesota.
Hammacher Schlemmer offered a Francis Glue Spreading machine, an iron and steel contraption for furniture makers that automatically applied glue to wood up to 30" wide and 4" high. It sold for the princely sum of $170.
Hammacher Schlemmer publishes a 400-page catalog featuring tools for all trades. In keeping with its reputation for high quality and wide selection, the opening page states, "Our tools are selected with great care and are of the best makes, and meritorious novelties will be, from time to time, added to our present line, our aim being to carry a complete stock of first-class tools."
